Being Kind
by you-idjits
Summary: After 8.17 Goodbye Stranger, Castiel boards a bus and runs as far as he can. But when a woman named Kate sits beside him and starts a conversation, Castiel ends up spilling everything to her, about Dean, and about how Castiel can never forgive himself. Kate teaches him something about kindness. Destiel, but pre-slash and semi-ambiguous ending. Focuses on their bond, not on romance.
1. Chapter 1

Castiel is on his third bus when she approaches him.

The bus is crowded, and the seat beside him is one of the few open ones left. She slides into it, stuffs a messenger bag at her feet.

For the first time, he looks away from the window to evaluate the woman beside him. She glances up, the eye contact awkward and fleeting. Her smile is brief, all politeness and no weight. Castiel remembers Dean's lessons in body language and drags away his eyes. Dean would make a comment about the staring, if he were here.

_Dean_. The pain throbs deep in his chest, a kind of pain Castiel isn't supposed to feel as an angel. He hurt the best friend he's ever had.

Knowing Dean, Castiel will be forgiven soon. But Castiel isn't sure he can forgive himself.

For thousands of years he was pure, righteous. Castiel followed the word of Heaven and no other. But then he seared his handprint onto Dean Winchester's soul, and his entire world changed.

Before, Castiel never questioned Heaven. His world revolved around Heaven, tied so closely to the archangels that he could see no other way of life.

The bond with Dean Winchester severed his ties with Heaven. Suddenly Castiel was tied to this man, this simple mortal with a penchant for alcohol and Led Zeppelin. Suddenly the world was shades of gray.

Castiel was lost without his bond with Heaven, and he made mistakes. He was led astray by Crowley, then again by the Leviathans. He will never be able to compensate for those mistakes.

Yet this mistake is his worst yet. Castiel cannot face Dean. He remembers how the man looked, eye bruised shut, blood dripping from his mouth, arm broken. He cannot accept Dean's forgiveness, cannot go on a hunt as if everything is back to normal.

Besides, there is the angel tablet to think of. The tablet is heavy in Castiel's lap, heavy with purpose and intent and guilt. Naomi will surely kill him if she finds him. He must run, and run quickly. Hence the bus.

Lost in his own thoughts, the countryside passes Castiel's window quickly. He makes no conversation with the woman beside him. The bus empties, but she doesn't leave her seat. Castiel does not mind. The heat beside him feels comforting. It grounds him, reminds him that he is just like her now. He feels more human than ever right now.

He misses Dean already.

After some time, she looks up from her book. She opens her mouth to speak, hesitates, then says, "So, where are you going?"

Castiel turns from the window, slowly. He doesn't respond, simply stares at her. Humans don't ever talk to him, besides Dean and Sam. He doesn't understand. This stranger has started a conversation on a bus in Iowa and Castiel has no idea what to say.

"Far away," he says, because that seems the best answer. In fact, Castiel has no idea what his final destination will be. All he knows is he needs to be away from Dean and away from Naomi and away from Crowley.

She smiles, and he isn't sure what is so funny. "I suppose I'm the same. My name's Kate."

Castiel nods, unsure of what to say next, and turns back to the window.

She persists. "Now is the point in the conversation where you tell me your name."

It reminds him of Dean, the gentleness in her tone, the playful jab at his social skills.

"I am called Castiel," he says simply, eyes still focused on the horizon.

"Interesting name."

"Some call me Cas," he adds. Dean was the first man to call him that, but then the name spread like wildfire. Even the angels call him that now. Castiel is not sure how he feels about that. But it seems acceptable for this woman to know the nickname. She is human, and she is warm.

Kate nods and goes back to her book.

She is one of the seven billion people Castiel fought so hard to save three years ago. It comforts him to know that she is here, breathing and smiling, because of him and his friends. Humanity is worth falling from Heaven, he thinks.

Lost in thought, he misses her next words. But he sees her mouth moving, and so he says, "Excuse me?"

"I asked where you were from."

He almost says Heaven. But Dean would scoff at that answer and tell him to lie. "Lawrence, Kansas." It feels right. Castiel is here, on this bus, wings clipped, because of Dean, however indirectly. His roots are Dean's roots.

"No kidding! I'm from Wichita."

Castiel flips briefly through his textbook knowledge of Earth and recalls that Wichita is a city in Kansas. He will never fully understand how humans connect with people like themselves, people from the same city or state or country. Borders mean nothing. He will never fully understand humanity.

(He understands Dean Winchester, inside and out. He rebuilt Dean Winchester from scratch, counted freckles and shaped hands. Castiel raised him from Hell. That bond is not easily broken, not by Naomi, not by anyone.)

When he contributes nothing to the conversation, Kate says, "You seem distracted."

He nods. "I am rather busy."

"Doing what? Examining the countryside? You're just staring out the window."

"I am on an important mission."

She grins and closes the book. "Secret Service, yeah? Let me guess – you're headed for New Mexico?"

He doesn't understand the reference. "I am not affiliated with your government."

Kate giggles. "You talk weirdly. Very formal."

"So I'm told."

"You don't talk to strangers often, do you?"

Not humans, he doesn't. He occasionally speaks to demons before he exorcises them. He hears the chatter of angels in his head, a constant reminder of all he's lost. Conversation with a kind woman on a bus is refreshing, really.

He shakes his head. "And you? Do you frequent cross-country buses often?"

"No. But I've just gotten… tired of life in Kansas. I'm going to the west coast to start fresh. Clean slate, you know."

How Castiel wishes he could have a clean slate. He almost had that once, as Emmanuel Allen, but that life is gone now. "I could use that."

There's a beat of silence, and then she asks, "From what are you running?"

He looks at her then, really looks at her. "How did you-"

"Takes one to know one." She looks back. Her eyes are plain, brown and a little too close together. Still, there's a spark of curiosity in them. Human eyes, no matter the color or shape, carry _life_ in them.

(Dean's are green some days and brown other days, and sometimes Castiel can feel their gaze on him, hot and cold at the same time.)

She looks away first, with a small smile. "C'mon, answer the question. Unless you really are Secret Service or something and aren't allowed to say."

Dean, in this situation, would lie without hesitation. Dean always deflects questions like this, covers them up in a shrug and a half-hearted joke. It is one of his faults, and one of his virtues.

Castiel does not have the same talent in deceit. "I betrayed a friend. I came very close to doing something… unforgivable. And so I ran away."

"That's a good reason." She nods thoughtfully. "You had the self-control to leave before too much damage was done."

"I am a coward."

"No, I think you're very brave. If you don't mind my asking… what did you do?"

Now she digs too deep. Castiel looks back to the window, shifts nervously in his seat. He rests his hands on top of the stolen tablet.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to pry." She ducks her head, and he recognizes the reaction as embarrassment.

"I was under the influence of someone. They wanted me to hurt a person about whom I care very deeply, and so I did."

She laughs. "You're very vague, you know."

"I am, in fact, aware of that. But I do not feel familiar enough with you to tell my story in full."

"Understandable. You're a very logical person, Cas."

The name feels foreign in her mouth. It feels wrong.

"What do you fear?" he asks her. She said she was running too.

Kate shrugs. "Death, I guess. I'm afraid of dying."

He smiles slightly. "It's not nearly as bad as you fear."

"Like you would know."

He fixes his eyes on her. "I have died three times."

She laughs like it was a joke. "And what was it like?"

"Quick," he says. "Except for the last time. The last time was slow, torturous." He remembers marching into the river, unable to control his own vessel. He remembers the desperation in his lungs as his air ran out. He remembers his limbs slowing, he remembers his heart stopping.

She looks at him differently, now. "Are you mental?"

"I was, once." He shrugs.

She shifts in her seat. Castiel is not very good at recognizing body language, but he recognizes this.

"Am I alienating you? I've been told I'm not very good at conversation," he says.

Kate laughs nervously. "You're a little weird, Cas. It's a bit scary."

"Yet you continue talking to me."

"I'm curious," she says. "You're alone on a bus with nothing but a duffel bag."

"As are you," he remarks.

"True. Maybe that's why I'm interested in you."

"I don't understand."

She raises an eyebrow. "Do I have to be any more obvious?"

"Yes."

Kate sighs and mutters, "Figures, hot single guy is a socially inept basket case."

"My temperature is the same as yours," he says. "No, wait. Dean uses that term to refer to voluptuous women." He cocks his head to the side. "But I am not a voluptuous woman."

Kate laughs, really laughs. "It means I think you're attractive. I was trying to flirt. Clearly you didn't get it."

Finally the meaning of her words dawns on him. "You made conversation because you were interested in me sexually."

"Well, when you put it that way…" She throws up her hands in resignation. "Nevermind."

Suddenly his jacket feels a little too hot, the bus a little too stuffy. "Oh. Excuse me, I didn't mean to- I don't- I wasn't trying to-"

"Are you getting flustered now? That's adorable."

His mouth opens and closes several times. Castiel never knows what to say in these situations. Dean would have the perfect line prepared, a casual deflection of the girl's interest, but Castiel is not nearly as eloquent.

"Seriously, it's fine. I wasn't too invested in it. Just thought you were cute. Let me guess, you've got a girl waiting for you at the bus stop?"

Castiel shakes his head. "No, I have no one waiting for me."

"No girlfriend?"

He thinks briefly of Meg. They had something, but it would never have amounted to much. She was more attached than he.

He felt her death, even from miles away. Meg was good, near the end, and she was his friend. But Castiel was not in love with her. He does not ache with longing for her.

When he hesitates to respond, Kate prompts, "There's something you're not telling me."

"There was a woman. She expressed an interest in me, and I reciprocated. But now she is dead and I don't feel anything."

Kate lets out a quiet breath. "I'm sorry for your loss."

Castiel shrugs one shoulder as he's often seen Dean do. "As I said, we had a connection but nothing more."

"So maybe you just don't like girls. Do you have a boyfriend, then?"

He shakes his head, but of course Dean comes to mind. Dean is always on his mind. "There is a man. His name is Dean. We have a… bond. Much stronger than the one I had with Meg. The kind of bond that transcends lifetimes. My life revolves around him. I think that is what humans would call love.'"

"Okay. So you're gay. No wonder you rejected my advances. No big deal."

Castiel looks at her. "No, I am not gay, or straight, or anything. Dean is a separate category entirely. He's everything."

"So he's your soul mate?" She smiles slightly.

"My grace is seared onto his soul. I am forever devoted to him." Castiel wonders briefly if that means the same thing. He doesn't quite understand human love.

A look of understanding dawns on Kate's face. "He's the person you betrayed."

Castiel sinks down into his seat, dropping his gaze. "Yes."

"And now you can't face him because you think he won't forgive you?"

Castiel shakes his head. "Dean will forgive me, in time. I cannot forgive myself. I've betrayed him one too many times in the past few years. Yet somehow he still believes in me."

"Sounds like a helluva guy. You want my advice?"

"Yes." Castiel has always been inept when it comes to love.

"You forgive yourself. Everybody makes mistakes."

"Not like mine."

"You said you were under the influence of someone else. It wasn't your fault you hurt him."

"Yet I was the one who threw punches. I nearly killed him."

"You nearly-" She stops at that, and gives him the same look she did earlier when they discussed death. "Are you, like, a murderer or something? Should I be scared?"

"I won't hurt you," he says. "You are kind. You have no reason to fear me."

"You're not helping."

He sighs. "Then go; find another seat on this bus. You started the conversation, you can end it just as easily and leave me to my reflections."

"Yeah, but…" she hesitates. "You look like you could use some kindness."

Castiel looks up at her. "And why are you offering it?"

She turns away from his gaze. "You, uh, you never asked from what I was running. I just… I don't have a lot of time left, and I figured I'd use the days I had making others' lives better."

Castiel looks at her, really looks at her for the first time. He'd been distracted before, too focused on his own burdens, to notice hers. Castiel can read a person's history from the size of their pupils and the way they hunch their shoulders. He never thought to read hers.

He notices for the first time how thin her brown hair is, how hollow her face looks. "You were diagnosed with a brain tumor."

She nods. "Yeah, uh, a couple of days ago. I've got about a month left, they said."

"So you dropped everything and headed west. What is it you humans say? Carpe diem?"

She grins, lips pulled taut and thin. Castiel's appalled he didn't notice the cancer before. "Yeah. Kindness is really all I have left to give the world."

On days like these, Castiel is reminded of why he saved humanity. Humans are beautiful, God's greatest creation.

He stares at her openly now, ignoring Dean's rules. "You are a wonderful person."

Her eyes widen very slightly. "Thanks. No one's, uh, told me that before."

"But what you are doing – kindness for the sake of kindness. It's inspiring."

She shrugs. "Even at your lowest point, you can always do something kind for a stranger. Give them advice, money, whatever. I have nothing left, nowhere to go. So I sit next to a stranger on the bus and ask him what he's running from, flirt a little, and hope it all works out. It's fulfilling. That's my philosophy, at least."

Castiel nods slowly. Before, when he traveled the country healing the sick, he considered it penance for his sins. But this woman is right – being kind is not a punishment. It is her way of giving all she has to the world.

If anything, Castiel can do the same. He can devote himself to humanity, devote himself to Dean Winchester. He can be kind.

He looks out the window again. In the next town over, there's a hospital full of the sick. Suddenly, he has a destination on this journey.

First though, he must repay the kindness bestowed unto him.

"Thank you," he says. "I have to go now."

"Wait, what? What do you mean, you have to go? The next bus stop is an hour away!"

He reaches out and touches her forehead, feels the tumor dissolve under his fingers. This woman will live a long, full life.

Kate flinches against his touch. "What are you doing?"

"I am being kind," he says.

She blinks, and when she opens her eyes again, Castiel is gone.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: So, part two. Dean's POV this time. Don't expect a third chapter; this is a two-shot and it's staying that way.**

* * *

Dean paces back and forth at the bus stop, checking the time on his phone every two minutes. The bus was supposed to be here already.

Sam took the Impala with him when he left last Thursday, something about a shapeshifter in North Dakota. Two days later, Dean heard of a man in a dirty trench coat healing terminal illnesses in a hospital in Iowa.

He doesn't know what Castiel's up to, but he knows he has to be in Iowa immediately. Thus he resorts to public transportation.

The bus stop is mostly empty, save for one woman on a bench. She glances up from her book every now and then, eyes raking him up and down.

What the hell is Castiel doing in Iowa? He talked about healing people before, but now he's on the run with the angel tablet and causing miracles isn't exactly inconspicuous. The last time Dean saw Castiel, Dean was bloodied and bruised on the floor of Lucifer's crypt, and Castiel hovered over him with an Angelsword.

Dean still doesn't understand much of what happened, but he doesn't blame Castiel. He _knows _Castiel. He knows Castiel would never…

Castiel couldn't make that final blow. Castiel couldn't, Castiel wouldn't kill Dean. Would he?

Three years ago, Dean would never have doubted Castiel. Castiel saved Dean from Hell. Castiel fell from Heaven for him. Castiel fought at his side.

Dean trusts Castiel, without hesitation. Castiel is his best friend, his family, his soul mate. Castiel is his angel.

He was never afraid of Castiel before. But in that crypt, Dean felt his hands shake, felt his heart pound. He was positively terrified.

Not for death, exactly. Been there done that, after all. Dean was afraid that Castiel would really do it, really kill him. Dean was afraid that Castiel was capable of shattering their bond so fully. If Castiel could kill Dean, it would mean the bond was never that strong to begin with. It would mean the Castiel who raised him from perdition was gone. It would mean there was no hope for Castiel. And that _terrified_ Dean.

If anything, the experience has reaffirmed his faith in Castiel. He doesn't feel betrayed, not really. Dean understands that Castiel was possessed, even if he doesn't know the details. He's angry at whoever this Naomi chick is, but he can't be angry at Cas.

He was angry at Cas, really angry after the whole Purgatory business. But then Cas was dead and Dean just felt this _hole _in his chest that burned hot and ached cold and he doesn't ever want to feel like that again.

Castiel died still thinking Dean was angry with him. Dean can't ever let that happen again.

That's why Dean has to find him now. Cas has run off with the angel tablet, and he probably thinks Dean is angry or hurt or something. So Dean has to find his angel and set the story straight.

He has to tell him that he could never be angry with Castiel, not anymore. It took a year in Purgatory for Dean to realize it. But seeing Cas like that, covered in dirt, machete in hand, it made Dean realize a lot of things.

Dean would do anything for Castiel.

If that means taking a bus at five in the morning to Nowhere, Iowa, then he'll work with it.

He checks his phone again. The bus is seventeen minutes late now.

"Which bus are you waiting for?"

He spins, hand going to his belt for his gun. But it's just the woman on the bench. Dean was so lost in his thoughts he'd forgotten she was there.

"Uh, the one headed for Iowa."

She laughs a little. "Really? I just got back from Iowa. I'm headed home now."

He breathes a laugh. "What a coincidence."

"My name's Kate," she says.

"Dean." He rakes a hand through his hair, goes back to his pacing.

"So why Iowa?"

He shrugs. "I might ask the same of you."

"I was headed for Oregon, when something… changed my mind, you might say." She smiles slightly, like there's a joke he doesn't quite get.

Frankly, Dean doesn't care. Finding Castiel matters most right now, finding him and bringing him home.

"You remind me of a man I met on the bus, actually," she says. Damn, this lady is nosy.

He glares at her a little. "Sorry, I'm kind of busy right here."

She laughs outright then. "He said that too."

Dean really doesn't give a fuck about some stranger she met on a bus. Hell, she's a stranger to him. All he wants is to get to Iowa. He should never have let Sammy take the Impala. Public transportation sucks.

He considers stealing a car, but he's not really in the mood. He's stressed and tired and grumpy and all he wants is to curl up in a bus seat and take a nap.

He wonders if Cas is all right. He worries that he isn't. God, if Castiel is in trouble, Dean doesn't know what he'll do.

Kate insists on making conversation, though, and so he grunts responses and keeps checking his phone.

Eventually, Kate says, "You should come and sit down. Pacing won't make the bus come any faster."

He's seriously considering shooting her in the head. Instead he sits down.

"So, why the rush? What's so important in Iowa?"

Dean can lie his way out of any situation, but again, he's in a foul mood. "My friend ran out on me and now I have to go catch up with him."

"Why'd he leave?"

He doesn't know why he's telling her this. "He fucked up, really badly. And I think he thinks I'm angry at him now. I don't know why he left. I don't know what's going on. All I know is he was spotted in Iowa and I've got to go talk to him."

"Are you? Angry at him, I mean."

He looks up. "No! No, I'm not. It wasn't his fault."

"What did he do?"

Dean rolls his eyes, checks the time on his phone. "What's with the third degree, lady?"

"Sorry," she says immediately, cheeks coloring. "I didn't mean to pry. I'm just, you know, curious."

Dean hasn't even told Sam the details. Why should he tell a complete stranger?

Maybe the anonymity of it is good, better than talking with Sam. He can tell this woman anything without seeing that look of pity in her eyes. Without her pursuing the conversation a day, a week from now. He doesn't have any baggage when he's talking to her.

So he says, "He beat me up. Broke my arm and stuff."

Kate snaps up, eyes going wide. "What did you say your name was again?"

He raises an eyebrow. "Dean. Why?"

"Castiel. You're looking for Castiel, aren't you?"

Dean starts, jumps to his feet. His gun is out automatically and aimed at her heart. She screams and drops her book.

"Please don't hurt me, oh my God." Her hands are trembling, eyes wider even than before. "Oh my God, please don't shoot."

"How do you know him?" Dean growls. "What are you, a demon? Are you working for Crowley? What have you done to him?"

She stutters, trips over her words, her voice a mixture of fear and confusion. "I didn't- I don't know what you're talking about! I just sat next to him on a bus and he started talking about some guy named Dean and I thought, what are the chances? Oh God, please don't shoot me. I don't know anything!"

Dean believes her, so he lowers his gun. Then it sinks in that if she really is a regular human, he's probably scarred her for life. "Okay. I believe you."

She looks on the verge of tears. "What's going on? Why are you doing this?"

He steps towards her slowly, hands up to show they're empty. "I'm sorry. I'm really, really sorry. I didn't mean to scare you. You've done nothing wrong."

"Then what's with the gun?" she says. She's starting to get hysterical, which is bad, because Dean can't afford a police inquiry right now.

"I-" He curses. This is an awful situation. "Cas is being trailed by some, uh, bad guys. I thought you might have been one of them. I'm just really worried about him."

"So you pulled a gun on me? Do you even have a license for that thing?"

"Just calm down, lady- Kate. I'm not going to hurt you. I just thought… Nevermind, forget what I thought. How do you know Cas?"

She chokes through a few breaths, but visibly begins to calm. "He and I were on the same bus. I struck up a conversation."

The Castiel Dean knows isn't likely to make conversation with a stranger. But then again, Castiel isn't a very common name. It has to be the same man. "He's about yea high, rumpled hair, absolutely no social skills? Talks like he's in a courtroom?"

"Yeah, that's- that's him. And you're his Dean, aren't you?"

Dean tenses up again. "What did he say about me?"

She stoops to pick up her book. "A lot, um. Sort of a long story. What did you mean, there are bad guys after him? He just said he was running from you."

Dean curses. "I knew it. Jesus, I need to get to Iowa."

"But, um, is he really Secret Service or whatever? He said some weird stuff, I don't know."

Dean laughs shakily. What has Castiel gone and told this woman? "Okay, let's start with the basics. What did he say about me?"

She's still shaking from the whole incident with the gun, but Kate manages a smile. "You're really him, aren't you?"

"Who?"

"The way he talked about you… Like nothing else mattered in the world but what you thought of him."

Dean drops his head into his hands. "He thinks I'm angry with him, doesn't he?"

"He seemed more… angry at himself? I don't know, he acted like he'd done a lot wrong and was trying to run from that."

"Yeah, that makes sense." Of course, Castiel would blame himself. He's probably wallowing in self-pity in Iowa.

"Are you in love with him?" she asks abruptly.

"What? What the hell kind of question is that?"

"You are, aren't you?" Her smile widens, the glint in her eye mischievous.

"I- It's more complicated than that."

"Right, right, soul mates and all that."

"He said that?"

She shrugs. "Something along those lines. I thought you two were dating."

Dean shakes his head. "Hell no. He's not, we're not…"

She raises an eyebrow, and Dean suddenly finds himself unable to lie to this woman. So he just shuts up entirely.

"Listen, he was in pretty bad shape, but then… I don't know, I started talking about stuff, and he just cheered up. I don't know. He seemed like he wanted to help people or something."

Dean nods. "Yeah, he was doing that before. Castiel is a good guy, he helps people."

"He helped me," she says.

He does a double-take. "Sorry, what?"

"I told him about my brain tumor, and he did this weird thing, touched my head. I went to the doctors to get a scan, and the tumor was just… gone. As if it'd never been there. The doctors didn't believe me, of course, but I'm convinced he…"

Dean smiles, just a little. That sounds exactly like his Castiel. "Yeah, that was him."

"What did he do? That's impossible. And then- and then he disappeared, right off the bus. The bus driver didn't believe me when I said that."

Dean laughs. "Yeah, he does that. I hate it when he does that."

She looks at Dean nervously, then down to the gun on his hip. "He talked about humans like… like he wasn't one of them."

Dean gives her a sidelong look. "He's not."

She takes the news surprisingly well. It takes her a moment, and her breathing quickens, but she doesn't question him. "What is he?"

"He's an angel of the Lord."

"A-" That really rocks her. She stares at him in disbelief for a moment. "You're joking. Angels aren't real."

"Yeah, they are. And you just met one. Healing, teleportation… it's all in the angel handbook."

She looks at him, then looks out at the empty road. "Wow. Okay."

"You're taking this well."

"I've spent the last week tossing around theories about who – or what – that guy was."

He waits patiently for a moment to let the revelation sink in. But the matter is really kind of pressing, so eventually he has to say, "What else did he tell you?"

"Not much, really. He babbled some stuff I didn't really understand. He seemed really worried about you and what he'd done to you. That his mistake was irreparable."

"Jesus, I've already forgiven him." Dean lets out a breathy laugh. Castiel's always been so stubbornly ignorant of Dean's faith in him.

"Yeah, he thought that would happen. I think, honestly, he just had to get away from whatever happened for a little while."

Dean drops his head. "Son of a bitch. If that idiot goes and gets himself killed…"

"You said bad guys were chasing him. What did you mean? If he's an angel, then define bad?"

"King of Hell? Half the angels of Heaven?"

"Angels are chasing him? But angels are good."

He laughs. "No, most of them really aren't. Castiel sort of…went rogue. Did he tell you about what happened?"

"He just said he really hurt you."

Dean curses. Of course, Cas would leave out the crucial part about how it _wasn't his fault_. "He was possessed, by another angel. It wasn't his fault. He actually, um, saved my life. He fought back."

When she doesn't respond, Dean looks up to see why. Kate is just staring at him, an appreciative look in her eyes.

"What?" he snaps.

"You two really are soul mates," she says. "The angel and the human."

"It sounds like a chick flick," Dean grumbles, but he doesn't deny it. The kind of bond he has with Castiel… Maybe it's love, maybe not. He doesn't really care about that; he just cares about Cas.

Dean had all but given up on his bus coming, but at the last moment it pulls up. He stands up, anxious to get on and get to Iowa.

Halfway up the stairs, he turns back to Kate. "Thank you. Really. And promise you won't…"

"I won't tell a soul," she says, winking. "Go get him. Good luck."

Dean turns his back on her then, intent on finding Cas and bringing him home.


End file.
